User:Mmurrell15/sandbox

Mer Forte
Mer Forte
Background information
Origin	Cincinnati, Ohio
Genres	Synthpop
Years active	2020–present
Labels	Izzy Pickles Records
Members	Harry Hanneman; Olivia Hanneman
Website	www.merforteband.com

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Mer Forte is a Alternative Rock duo from Cincinnati, Ohio.^[1] Formed in 2020, the duo released their first Single, Balcony on December 16, 2021. It was followed two weeks later by The Dream of You on December 29, 2021. Their third single, I'm Yours, was released on January 7, 2022.

History[edit]

Formation[edit]

Harry Hanneman decided to venture into playing music while attending the University of Cincinnati in 1997. He bought his first keyboard from a pawn shop in 1997 for $20. He began by learning synthesizer portions of songs by Depeche Mode, The Cure, Erasure, Enya, INXS, Men Without Hats, and Nine Inch Nails. In 1998 he bought his first acoustic guitar. Harry learned the basics of guitar from his roommate, Andrew Hackett. Influenced by multiple genres, Harry began writing songs in 1999, using synthesizer riffs inspired by synthpop and alternative rock artists, guitar parts influenced by alternative rock and punk rock bands such as The Pixies, The Dead Kennedys, Hüsker Dü, The Cure, and The Smashing Pumpkins, and bass lines and drums influenced by Thrash Metal bands such as Slayer, Exodus, Vio-Lence, Overkill, and Anthrax. Harry has also stated that he has found inspiration from many movie scores, especially by composers John Williams, John Carpenter, Alan Silvestri, and Hans Zimmer.

Harry met Olivia Hanneman in 2001 while both were working at Kinko's. The two formed a close friendship, but their love for music didn't get shared for almost two decades. Harry transferred to Arizona State University in 2002, and moved to Tempe, Arizona. The two lost touch with each other. Shortly after moving to Arizona, Harry enlisted in the United States Army. He is still serving in the Army today, awaiting his pending retirement. Olivia finished nursing school and still works as a nurse today.

Reconnecting and Creation of Mer Forte[edit]

During the peak of the COVID-19 Pandemic Harry reached out to Olivia when he thought he might have COVID, hoping Olivia's training as a nurse could assist him in recovering. Olivia helped Harry discover that he actually was infected with Lyme Disease from a tick bite Harry received during training. The two were reconnected and music became the primary topic of their conversations. Mer Forte officially became a duo in 2020.

Musical style[edit]

The duo's first three singles all have very strong synthpop influence in them, but also possess blast beat drums, and baselines influenced by thrash metal. The duo claim that they don't want to be labelled at all, because they want to be free to explore other genres.